Solid Comfort
by JeffC FTW
Summary: After being rejected by the Great Link and transformed into a solid as punishment, Odo suffers internally. Can one certain spirited girl begin to pull him out of his torment? During the end of "Broken Link".
**"Broken Link", the finale of season 4, was one of the best and most heart-breaking episodes I have ever seen - especially when it involves Odo being judged for killing a fellow shape-shifter and ultimately turned into a humanoid as punishment. In my story "His Enemy's Daughter", it is mentioned that Mia loathes his people so much based on what he told her, but we never see the beginning of how it really happened. Plus, it begged an exploration of Odo dealing with the end of the episode, in which he is suffering his newfound transformation and exile from his people. I still curse to this day at the Female Changeling and the rest, and so I channeled it into Mia Sisko.**

 **The story is rated mostly for nudity and anatomical references, and it's very angsty.**

 **Disclaimer: I own only Mia, and the rest of Star Trek and Odo belong to Paramount.**

He barely registered anything that happened around him other than the pain that seared both his body and mind. He had never felt anything like this before, nor did he think he ever would. It was nothing compared to being called a monster just because he was not like everyone else - during the occupation as well as when Sisko first arrived to clean up the mess - and living as an orphan in a figurative sense given he'd never known where he came from. Who could describe the joy he felt when he did find his family, with Nerys beside him?

If only they were not against everything he stood for.

Why were the Changelings so afraid that they hardened and formed their own empire, hell-bent on conquering solids just to keep themselves safe? Sometimes Odo wished he never found them, but it was not like he had the power of telepathy. Life played cruel tricks at every turn to make. Just as it did to him when he had to do the necessary thing to save his friends and prevent a war: he killed the Changeling responsible. And for that, it cost him dearly.

The moment he stepped into the Great Link with the Female Founder, it was like he was first arriving in paradise, and nothing else mattered - but the bliss would end and become pain. Regret in self-indulgence and lack of care; he was not here for that. He was here because he was going to be damned for a crime against a sacred law the shape-shifters set to be apart from the chaotic solid way of life.

The agony of being changed from the very thing he was into something else was intolerable.

Fire consumed his body when the eden decided he was no longer a part of it. Only when he was thrown from the sea of gold and onto unforgiving rock before his comrades, he tingled in his... _flesh._ He looked up at the sky, the menacing red and gold a counterpart to the darkness that he had been thrown into in physical form. Feeling around himself in his misery, he felt solid SKIN - the texture was smooth and spiked with some hair along the arms, as it was with humans - and not his Bajoran uniform that was part of him. He was naked, a fish splashed from its home onto dry land, the cruel destiny. He would not look at Captain Sisko or even Dr. Bashir who took the readings and found the following: a heart, lungs, and _a digestive system._ And everything a solid possessed in their body.

"What did you DO to him?!" Sisko demanded furiously.

"He has been judged justly," the Female Founder replied calmly as she stood before Odo's quivering, vulnerable and bare form on the shore of the island. "We made him a solid, which he has always belonged. Odo..." Damn her for even daring to _touch_ him after what she and the others just did to him! But he could not move away in his fragility. "...killing you would have been too merciful."

The Dominion and the Founders certainly had a strange brand of justice in their own eyes, and in his case, death was too easy a punishment. _You have to understand nothing like this has EVER happened..._

He knew he had to face the consequences, but as a result, it cost him his abilities and nearly his life. Now he was back on the _Defiant,_ wrapped in a blanket and wanting to be alone for sure save for Dr. Bashir coming on occasion. _We gave you what you wanted...we made you a solid._

Her voice would never leave him alone.

He had blood in his body now, and Bashir drew a sample to diagnose what type it was - it was O-negative, one of the most rarest of blood types. Not a trace of protoplasm of his former system. Ironic he had a rare type which marked him as what he used to be. Physiologically, he was completely human save for his face...a reminder of what had been taken from him. The Changelings did this to him on purpose.

He hated them all.

He hated them and meant every word, nor would he EVER forgive them.

~o~

She was working when the _Defiant_ came back, being present when the wormhole opened to let the ship come out, then closed behind it. She held her breath as she had been worried for Odo because he was sick. Quark could not stop his chatter about how Odo might be getting his for what he did to "that enemy Changeling".

Mia Sisko despised his people even though she never met them, much less that spokeswoman whom he said was very cold and uninviting. She hated people like that and always would. If they did something to her friend...

She was off her shift that she needed to go to the airlock at once on the Promenade to greet her father, Odo and the rest, still in her lavender belly dancer inspired costume from work, tying her long brunette hair out of her face while she walked and joined some other people - including Quark, Rom and Leeta - to greet Captain Benjamin Sisko, Commander Worf and a cuffed Garak - what did he do this time? - as well as Commander Dax and Dr. Bashir, and finally...

ODO!

Her mind burst up in alarm when she noticed a certain change in the appearance of the shape-shifter...and the fact he did not wear his security uniform, but a pair of teal blue _pajamas_ that belonged to any patient Julian treated. Now she knew what the Founders did to him was much worse than anticipated, but knowing Odo, he had no choice but to face judgment. Her heart fell to the floor when she made eye contact with him that he broke away and avoided looking at anyone else, knowing. Her father and the others were just as grim, Julian looking over her way and pursing his lips. Mia was afraid to even ask.

"Well, I'm not gonna lie," she heard Quark say, "looks like the Founders made him better in a much more 'solid' way." Furious, she whirled around and glared down at him, Leeta joining her.

"Quark, tonight is not a good night for you to shoot your mouth," Mia hissed, then turned and stalked away from him. She needed to see her father. "Daddy!"

"Mia," he answered somberly, accepting her in an embrace, far from happy if not directed at her. "Odo isn't doing well."

"So I noticed." She looked up to the others and seeing how their grave expressions did not change. "What did they do to him?" she demanded, keeping as calm as possible even if she festered inside. Worf remained ever aggressive to the face as he dwelled mostly on Garak for his attempted sabotage of the _Defiant_ against the Founders' homeworld for what happened to the Obsidian Order - and with her father, Bashir and _Odo_ still down there - and Dax was trying not to break down; but Chief O'Brien could not speak either. Then Benjamin's voice broke the silence.

"We should sit down and have a talk."

The whole time they were in his office, notably her and Major Kira who cared about Odo just as much as she while the rest were back to their posts, Mia trembled with fury and heartbreak when the story was given to her.

"Damn that _bitch,_ " she snarled when she thought of the Female Changeling, who she loathed more than ever and NEVER wanted to ever meet, then fell into Kira and cried softly for Odo. The major's pregnant abdomen was the mild obstacle between them that gave both women a source of comfort in front of the captain who was just as much sorrowful for the constable.

~o~

Never did he think he would feel itchy by the Inkarian wool that was used to knit Bajoran uniforms, and it continued to bother him despite Garak's assurances he would get used to it. And after that came the hunger pains he never thought he would ever experience. He'd never had the need to eat before. "Think of the wonderful foods you get to enjoy!" the tailor had said enthusiastically, making the former shape-shifter turn his attention and decide now was the time to do his job.

He should arrest Garak for what he tried to do to his people's homeworld, with him and the captain and doctor still on the surface. "Sabotage, assaulting a Federation officer, attempting to incite war between the Federation and the Dominion," Odo stated firmly.

"Oh, but my heart was in the right place," the Cardassian insisted. "I never intended to harm you, the captain or my dear friend the doctor."

Aroya had been one of those to hear about what happened to him and had stopped by the shop to offer her apologies and that she would be there for him. Odo shook his head; he still did not see the point of mating rituals. Garak was beaming at him that he had a chance now, but Odo huffed; now he had his job to do, so he led the Cardassian out of the shop.

Barely a couple days passed, but now he stood in his quarters, seeing how the statues and everything once used for shape-shifting had been removed as he had no more use of it. When he was in the Great Link, in that one long moment which progressed into days, everything he heard was clear: how much the Founders hated and distrusted all solids, all of it very clear and understood now that he was here...but then it was gone, and he felt alone. Detached.

Isolated.

 _Rejected._

He had experienced the same thing Worf and Quark had done because he did what was necessary, chose between his own people and the Federation.

He had always rejuvenated in natural state, but now he had no need of it, so his bucket had to be stashed with the rest of his statues. Only a few smaller ones he kept on the shelves for decorative means. Now he had a bed to sleep in, and when he lay on his side that first night - a strange sort of relaxation came over his senses and eased his troubles for the night.

When the computer woke him up, he didn't know who or what he was anymore, except one thing: he was still Deep Space 9's chief of security, and his job and life on the station was all he had left to live for, never mind that he was rushing his recovery.

Besides going about his normal routine, he sometimes forgot the fact he couldn't shift from his uniform on his own, and that he couldn't sleep in a bucket anymore. Being human meant a change of clothes in the morning and at the end of the day - and that meant to glimpse your bare flesh. Which was what Odo got to do tonight, the day after the return to the station.

It dawned on him he never even wondered what it was like for a human or a humanoid to be...naked. Seeing himself in the mirror given to him made him feel small and humiliated even though this was him now. His skin tone had not changed at all from the natural peach tone, which seemed to be like most of the Bajorans as well as Mia's, his lightly muscled physique not changed at all - with the exception of other features he had never seen before that he was not sure if it was normal to have on the body. Two small buds on either side of his upper chest, for example, and when he touched them both, they were sensitive. They were called nipples. He jolted a little when the sensations shot through his nervous system, which helped with the sensitivity.

Turning around to look at his back and lower didn't help either. There was nothing special about his back, but below were a pair of firm, flared halves with a valley - he had no idea what to make of his buttocks which everyone had that did not change.

But most of all, his cheeks burned when he looked down between his legs that he closed his eyes. A length of flesh with a coned tip dangled from the base of his thighs, enveloped with a burst of dark blonde hairs, finely curled and not going any further. Was this...normal?

He looked this up, staying up and forgetting about the time as he absorbed himself in his research - IF you could call discovering these parts of your new body an interesting topic. The answer was yes, it was indeed average for a being, particularly in adulthood. The stage of beginning was diagnosed as puberty, which he was very familiar with and had almost exploded when Bashir assumed might have been his condition with the fluctuations; that or menopause. Anyway, he notably found out the deal with the hair on the groin area; it was called pubic hair. In a way, Odo could not help but feel like he wanted to melt and never return again to this form. He kept telling himself this was natural, that it was what he had now - and he knew for sure he wouldn't forget about this for a LONG time, even if he pretended he didn't have it.

Since the day before yesterday, he shunned everyone around him at the end of the day, including Nerys. And _Mia,_ who currently occupied his mind. Odo shook his head; he was being foolish. He didn't want to see anyone outside the work zone...but the doors buzzed. He sighed and laid down on the bed, calling for whoever it was to come in.

"Odo?"

He sat up quickly. "Mia?"

She stood in the bedroom doorway moments later, her blue dress in waves over the front and slimming her body at the same time. Her curls were wild over both shoulders as usual - sometimes he asked himself how in the universe he got a vivid, kindred spirit to be his friend as the fierce Kira Nerys. Mia easily accepted him the moment they met, found him fascinating because she'd never seen anyone or anything like him, her eyes - one brown and one blue which replaced the one she lost in that place - shining full of life.

Today they were muddied with tears she tried to hold back. Tears for him. "I'm sorry to bother you," she whispered, her hands behind her back which he found strange. "I know you don't want anyone to talk to, but I needed to be here..."

Odo sat up straighter. "Of course. You're always welcome."

Venturing further into the room and looking around to see the immense change, she pulled her arms out from behind and showed two brown bottles of - "What is that?" he asked curiously. He'd tasted some foods the last several hours such as Bajoran cuisine like hasperat which he thought spicy yet delectable, and moba fruit as well as kava, and now Mia was bringing in what looked like an Earth beverage.

She sat down beside him, bouncing a little. "Root beer," she said lightly, giving him one. "A favorite of mine and Jake's. You might like it. It'll cheer you up only a little bit." Now she cracked the smile that made him finally manage.

But it was gone as quickly as it came.

"I doubt it'll cure my eternal suffering," Odo said bitterly, staring down at the dark amber bottle.

She hissed. "I curse that bitch and the rest of the shape-shifters for doing this to you," she said, reaching over and taking his free hand into hers. He looked up at her again, into her eyes once more, seeing the fire of anger and hate. She had a good mouth to run, but sometimes it got the best of her. But what could he say? She could curse all she wanted, as she put it, but it would do no real good. "Everyone is still talking about it, even Quark." Odo snorted; of course, Quark. Just wait till one day he could still get his hands on that no good troll, and he'd give him something to really talk about.

"Of course they are. But they'll never understand how I truly feel - and it's nothing a solid will ever understand." He closed his eyes. "Everything except my work has been ripped from my being. I feel like...nothing to live for except my career."

Mia's hand on his tightened. "That's not true," she insisted. "There's plenty more to help you cope. I might not understand what the...Great Link was really like, but I know for sure you did not deserve it, no matter what you think or what THEY may think. You have me, the major - and everyone else." She leaned up and gave him a kiss on the cheek, chaste and filled with true care. She was a pure and virtuous girl, as the humans put that phrase for a young lady who had no experience with a man, and that was what made Odo consider her everything in his life - if not for the way he knew he still felt for Kira despite the fact she was now with First Minister Shakaar.

Mia was still smiling, still speaking softly, easing his turmoil in the slightest.

"You're not alone."

His mouth hurt from trying to smile, and hers was suddenly gone. "Oh, God, you're..." She trailed off then and reached for his face. Confused and a bit alarmed, Odo reared his head back because he had no idea what prompted her to wipe whatever it was from his face. Reaching up, Odo found the source: a clear fluid was on his skin. She didn't need to finish her sentence; Odo was crying. He never shed tears before, but he'd seen this behavior so many times to know it could mean many things: happiness or sadness, and other things related to either word. It was grief in his case.

At that moment, Odo could not control his feelings any longer and leaned into Mia, her arms coming around to hold him close to her, her soft hands massaging his back to alleviate his hoarse sobs at both his spite towards his people and his broken self.

 **Odo and Mia Sisko really have a unique friendship. She is Weyoun's love interest in the story I mentioned earlier in case no one knew her, and in the finale, Odo ended up delivering her and Weyoun's child. :)** **Read and review.**


End file.
